Academic literature on the topic 'Mqhayi S'

AbstractOn 14 June 2014 the Council of the University of Cape Town (UCT) voted to change race-based affirmative action in student admissions. The Council was ratifying an earlier decision by the predominantly White University Senate. According to the new policy race would be considered as only one among several factors, with the greater emphasis now being economic disadvantage. This paper argues that the new emphasis on economic disadvantage is a reflection of a long-standing tendency among left-liberal White academics to downplay race and privilege economic factors in their analysis of disadvantage in South Africa. The arguments behind the decision were that (1) race is an unscientific concept that takes South Africa back to apartheid-era thinking, and (2) that race should be replaced by class or economic disadvantage. These arguments are based on the assumption that race is a recent product of eighteenth century racism, and therefore an immoral and illegitimate social concept.Drawing on the non-biologistic approaches to race adopted by W. E. B. Du Bois, Tiyo Soga, Pixley ka Seme, S. E. K. Mqhayi, and Steve Biko, this paper argues that awareness of Black perspectives on race as a historical and cultural concept should have led to an appreciation of race as an integral part of people’s identities, particularly those of the Black students on campus. Instead of engaging with these Black intellectual traditions, White academics railroaded their decisions through the governing structures. This decision played a part in the emergence of the #RhodesMustFall movement at UCT.This paper argues that South African sociology must place Black perspectives on race at the center of its curriculum. These perspectives have been expressed by Black writers since the emergence of a Black literary culture in the middle of the nineteenth century. These perspectives constitute what Henry Louis Gates, Jr. calls a shared “text of Blackness” (Gates 2014, p. 140). This would provide a practical example of the decolonization of the curriculum demanded by students throughout the university system.

In reference to Moleleki (1988:122), African poetry as a result of contrast rather than individual, is the representation of a community. This representation contains a scale of values based on the community, and it gives symbolic expression to the community: manifesting a community of tradition from the past through the present to the future. Going by the above notion, the poet assumes the responsibility of being the spokes-person of the community in which he/she finds and identifies himself/herself. He/she feels the pain felt by his/her people, and shares the joy shared by them. His/her representation therefore is both genuine and representatively expressive in nature. In the chosen poems of S. E. K. Mqhayi the above mentioned aspects of poetic writing are well expressed. This representation being a symbolic expression on behalf of the community holds a magnificent semiotic significance. Such semiotic significance, which boarders around the several highs and lows of the community’s lifestyle. The community poet in this context blends the past and the present in his verses attempting to both preserve and express the sorrows, the joys, the pains as well as the fears of his community and its people. These are captured in chapters three and four of this study. The community poet under the worst form of systematized inhuman, racist subjection called apartheid employed careful and skilful means of reciting as well as penning his verses. In the last four chapters one discovers a skilful means of masking in order to avoid being penalised. S.E.K Mqhayi’s element of symbolic expression is by far the most significant aspect of his poems. A man who lived in the days of abject institutionalised racism and being one of those discriminated against, had no choice but to be loyal to his oppressors and at the same time, expressing himself in the most creatively careful manner. His works are rich with encodings and embellishments. These encodings and embellishments require some careful skills to decode and unveil. This research work will centre mainly on the unravelling of all that was either encoded or embellished within each selected work.

The focus of this thesis is on Xhosa oral and written poetry. The discussion in the thesis is based on the information from existing literature, the responses from the questionnaires and the interviews with some Xhosa iimbongi (person who sings praises) who have reflected on their personal experiences. In addition to this, S.E.K. Mqhayi is at the centre of discussion because as a prominent Xhosa imbongi he features in both the oral and the written world.

During the nineteenth century secular creative literature produced by missionaries and publishers was designed for the educational market and for school children and there was nothing for adults. Works of isiXhosa literature was controlled in content and freely edited by the missionaries to satisfy the demands of educational syllabuses. As a result, students at universities, scholars of literature and academics in higher education are lacking primary documents on this literature and therefore are forced to study the limited and unavailable literature books. This thesis concentrates on the work of a particular isiXhosa writer, namely that of S.E.K. Mqhayi. The earlier writers like S.E.K. Mqhayi, J.J.R. Jolobe, G.B. Sinxo and others made their mark in South African literature and culture. Their works were published in journals and newspapers in isiXhosa by the missionaries. This means isiXhosa literature can be found in abundance in the earlier newspapers. What needs to be addressed is how the South African community and literature scholars mentioned above could have access to that work. Mqhayi is well known as the father of the isiXhosa language because of his substantial literary and linguistic contribution to the development of the language. As already mentioned he made his contribution through written work which was published in various newspapers of his time and unfortunately most people are unable to access this material, hence the focus of this thesis. The vast majority of his journalism remains as yet uncollected. However, scholars like Opland (1983) and Saule (1989) made some effort to bring this information to the public through their extensive research. S.E.K. Mqhayi’s popular poems have been published and analyzed over the last century and more recently (Qangule 1979; Kuse 1979; Opland 1983; Saule 1989 & 1996; Ntuli & Swanepoel 1993 and Opland 2009). However, in terms of quantity and value, these are negligible compared to what Mqhayi has published. There are still numerous of Mqhayi’s poems that would add value to the study and history of isiXhosa literature. The main aim of this research is to carry on from where these scholars left off and to bring to the fore the legacy Mqhayi left to the South African people. Hence, thirty (30) poems on people by S.E.K. Mqhayi have been transcribed from the old newspapers, re- typed, translated into English and analysed. These poems are largely published in newspapers but have never been subsequently republished, and hence they are almost completely unknown. The thirty (30) poems have been selected with the assistance of Professor Jeff Opland, a retired Professor from the University of London’s School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS). The poems are from his Opland Collection of Xhosa Literature housed in Godalming, United Kingdom. They are presented in the manner in which they appeared originally, that is, in terms of isiXhosa orthography during the times of Mqhayi’s writing (Diplomatic Presentation). The data is analysed and discussed in relation to how Mqhayi’s biographical poems can give insight not only to Mqhayi’s subjects of praise, but into how he uses historical, political and sociocultural contexts in the praises of his subjects, meaning that the discussion revolves around the practice of the Historical-Biographical Criticism. The poems are translated into English to allow for this literature not only to be disseminated among isiXhosa speakers, but also to speakers of other languages who understand English. The translation method chosen is the one believed to produce the originality of the source text and sameness of meaning in the target text which is regarded as equivalence. This thesis therefore is an investigation into 30 poems selected from biographical poems written by S.E.K. Mqhayi in newspapers during the period 1899-1944. In essence this thesis presents an in-depth analysis of Mqhayi’s poems against the backdrop of oral literary theory as expounded by theorists who have grappled with the orality-literacy debate, a debate which directly informs Mqhayi’s poetry as he was the first oral poet to transition between orality and literacy.
Uncwadi oluveliswe kwishumi elinesithoba lamakhulu eminyaka ziimishinari nabapapashi lwalwenzelwe izifundiswa kunye nabantwana besikolo kwaye akukho msebenzi mninzi ofumanekayo owawenzelwe abantu basekuhlaleni. Umsebenzi omninzi wokubhaliweyo kuncwadi lwesiXhosa wawulawulwa, uhlelwa kwaye ulungiselelwa uqingqo lwezifundo. Oko ke kuye kwabangela ukuba abafundi abakumaziko emfundo ephakamileyo, iimfundi zoncwadi kunye nabahlohli zingabinawo amaxwebhu okwenene oncwadi lwesiXhosa, kwaye loo nto yenza ukuba kufundwe kwaye kwenziwe uphando ngeencwadi ezimbalwa. Olu phando ke ngoko luza kuqwalasela lugxininise kumsebenzi wombhali wesiXhosa onguS.E.K. Mqhayi. Ababhali bangaphambili abafana noo-S.E.K. Mqhayi, J.J.R. Jolobe, G.B. Sinxo nabanye bashiya ifuthe elikhulu kuncwadi nenkcubeko yoMzantsi Afrika. Imisebenzi yabo yayipapashwe ziimishinari ngesiXhosa kuluhlu lwemibhalo namaphephandaba. Oko ke kuthetha ukuthi le misebenzi yesiXhosa iyafumaneka kumaphepha-ndaba angaphambili. Okufuneka kulungisiwe yindlela abemi boMzantsi Afrika kunye nezi mfundi zoncwadi zikhankanywe ngentla zingathi ziwufumane lo msebenzi waba babhali bangaphambili. UMqhayi waziwa ngokuba yinkcuba- buchopho yolwimi lwesiXhosa kwaye udlale indima enkulu kakhulu ekuphuhliseni ulwimi lwesiXhosa. Njengokuba sele ikhankanyiwe ngentla, umsebenzi wakhe upapashwe kumaphephandaba awohlukeneyo wela xesha wayesaphila kwaye kungelishwa ke ukuba abantu abaninzi abakwazi ukuwufumana loo msebenzi. Eminye yemisebenzi yakhe emininzi ke kodwa ayiqokelelwanga. Iingcali ezifana noo-Opland (1983) noSaule (1989) zaye zenza uphando olukhulu zizama ukuzisa olu lwazi eluntwini, kodwa oko akwanelanga. Kwiminyaka edlulileyo imibongo edumileyo ka-S.E.K. Mqhayi sele yapapashwa (Qangule, 1979; Kuse, 1979; Opland, 1983 & 2009; Saule, 1989 & 1996; Ntuli & Swanepoel, 1993). Nangona kunjalo ke isekhona eminye imibongo kaMqhayi engekaveli nenokuthi ibe nenxaxheba kakhulu ekufundeni nasekufundiseni uncwadi lwesiXhosa. Olu phando ke kukuqhubeka apho aba babhali bakhankanyiweyo bayeke khona ukuzisa phambili umsebenzi nelifa elashiywa nguMqhayi kubemi baseMzantsi Afrika. Kungoko ke imibongo engabantu engama-30 kaMqhayi iza kuthi ikhutshelwe isuka kumaphephandaba akudala, iguqulelwe esiNgesini ze ihlahlelwe. Uninzi lwale mibongo ipapashwe kumaphephandaba akudala kwaye zange iphinde ipapashwe kwenye indawo, kungoko ke ingaziwa kakhulu. Ukukhethwa kwale mibongo ingama-30 kuncediswe nguNjingalwazi uJeff Opland, uNjingalwazi odla umhlala-phantsi weYunivesithi yase-London kwiSikolo seZifundo ngezaseAfrika naseMpumalanga (SOAS). Le mibongo isuka kuluhlu lwakhe athe waluqokelela nolubizwa ngokuba yi-Opland Collection of Xhosa Literature oluse- Godalming, e-United Kingdom. Indlela le mibongo eza kuthi ibhalwe ngayo yileyo uMqhayi wayeyibhale ngayo ngexesha lakhe. Le mibongo ihleliwe kwaye oko kubhaliweyo malunga nayo kuquka indlela apho imibongo kaMqhayi ngobomi babantu kuthi kubonise indlela abonga nabonisa ngayo izinto zoPolitiko, zakudala nezasekuhlaleni ezazisenzeka ngela xesha. Indlela ethi konke oku kuthi kuvele kule mibongo kaMqhayi kwaye kuya kuthi kuvezwe kolu phando. Ukuguqulelwa kwale mibongo esiNgesini kuya kuthi kuncede ukuba nabo bangasithethiyo isiXhosa bakwazi ukufumana le mibongo. Indlela esetyenzisiweyo yoguqulo-lwimi yale mibongo yileyo ivumela ukuba umbhalo uguqulelwe ngokufanayo nombhalo-ntsusa kwaye intsingiselo kumbhalo ekuguqulelwa kuwo ingatshintshi. Lo misebenzi ke ngoko uluphando lwemibongo engabantu ekhethiweyo engama30 ebhalwe nguSEK Mqhayi kumaphephandaba kwimiminyaka u1899 - 1944. Umongo wolu phando kukwenza uhlalutyo - nzulu lwemibongo kaMqhayi eyaleka kuphando - lwazi osele lwenziwe njengoko lucaciswa ziingcali ezithe zazamana nengxoxo yoncwadi lomlomo, ngxoxo leyo ethe yachaphazela ngokumandla umongo wezibongo zikaMqhayi njengembongi yokuqala ukuwela ukusuka kuncwadi lomlomo ukuya kuncwadi olubhaliweyo.

Until recently much of the literature recording the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries in the Eastern Cape focused purely on frontier conflict and missionary activity, ignoring the evolving culture of the colonized people. But as Somande Fikeni declares, “[i]t is important when celebrating the country’s heritage to look beyond battle sites, monuments and wars and to pay attention to South Africa’s intellectuals and knowledge producers” (quoted in Hollands 4). This is indeed the central purpose of my research. This thesis seeks to examine the influence of Christianity on early South African writing by Africans and the ambivalence with which Christianity is often treated in their work. In South Africa, as elsewhere in Africa, Christianity played a central role in the development of African literature through the influence of mission schools and printing presses. Thus from the outset the development of written literature was inseparable from the spread of Christianity. Nineteenth- and early twentieth-century writing by Africans reflects this: Christian idioms, biblical stories and images colour their work and yet are not employed unthinkingly. Each of the writers whom I will explore has a complex and at times ambivalent relationship with Christianity, and they use religious discourse for a variety of ends, some of them clearly at odds with their origins in the “civilizing mission” of Europe. According to Yunus Momoniat, “Their works . . . are the beginnings of an engagement not only with the world of words on a page, but also with the politics of literacy itself” (1). The subject of this research is three Xhosa writers from the Eastern Cape: the Reverend Tiyo Soga (1829-1871), the renowned novelist and “National Poet” S. E. K. Mqhayi (1875-1945), and the little-known poet Nontsizi Mgqwetho (Dates uknown, writings 1920-1929), who is described by Mbeki as “the most prolific woman Xhosa poet of the twentieth century” (6). The reason for focusing on the Eastern Cape is because the Xhosa “were the first Bantu people to be exposed to Christian proselytising and to receive a literate education” (Gerard 24). As a result much of the early literature in isiXhosa consisted of translations of the Bible and other Christian tracts, and such “improving” texts as Pilgrim’s Progress. In other words, it is in this work that the first roots of the influence of Christianity in southern Africa can be traced.

Dreaming of Freedom in South Africa examines for the first time the many different texts imagining the future after the end of apartheid. Focused on well-known and obscure literary texts from the 1880s to the 1970s, as well as the many manifestos and programmes setting out visions of the future, this book charts the dreams of freedom of five major traditions of anti-colonial and anti-apartheid resistance: the African National Congress (ANC), the Industrial and Commercial Workers Union (ICU), the Communist Party of South Africa (CPSA), the Non-European Unity Movement (NEUM) and the Pan-Africanist Congress (PAC). The works of a number of South African literary figures are discussed, including Olive Schreiner, S. E. K. Mqhayi, Alan Paton, Karel Schoeman, Jordan Ngubane, Winnifred Holtby, Ethelreda Lewis, Dora Taylor, Livingstone Mqotsi, Peter Abrahams, Richard Rive, Lauretta Ngcobo and Bessie Head. Political thinkers analysed include Nelson Mandela, R. F. A. Hoernlé, Albert Luthuli, Clements Kadalie, A. W. G. Champion, Edward Roux, James La Guma, Alfred Nzula, I. B. Tabata, Ben Kies, Anton Lembede, A. P. Mda and Robert Sobukwe. The theoretical dimensions of the study are orientated in relation to major Marxist critics of utopianism like Marx, Friedrich Engels, Leon Trotsky and Ernst Bloch, as well as to thinkers like Hannah Arendt, Immanuel Wallerstein, James C. Scott and Jay Winter. More than an exercise in historical excavation, Dreaming of Freedom in South Africa raises challenging questions for the post-apartheid present.

Literary and political expressions of the liberal dream of freedom from the 1880s to the 1970s are analysed in the opening chapter. The liberal dream’s lineage in political discourse is analysed in Cecil John Rhodes’s dreams of unifying South Africa in the 1890s; Olive Schreiner’s political journalism from the 1880s to the 1910s; the ANC’s Bill of Rights of 1923; H. Selby Msimang’s pamphlet The Crisis (1936); R. F. A. Hoernlé’s lectures South African Native Policy and the Liberal Spirit (1939); the ANC’s African Claims in South Africa (1943); the ANC’s Freedom Charter (1955); and the Liberal Party’s Blueprint for South Africa (1958). In juxtaposition with these political texts, the following literary texts articulating the liberal dream of freedom are analysed: Olive Schreiner’s Dreams (1890); J. A. D. Smith’s The Great Southern Revolution (1893); Archibald Lamont’s South Africa in Mars (1923); George Heaton Nicholls’s Bayete! (1923); S. E. K. Mqhayi’s U-Don Jadu (1929); Arthur Keppel-Jones’s When Smuts Goes (1947); Alan Paton’s Cry, the Beloved Country (1948); Lewis Sowden’s Tomorrow’s Comet (1951); Garry Allighan’s Verwoerd —The End (1961); Anthony Delius’s The Day Natal Took Off (1963); Karel Schoeman’s The Promised Land (1972); and Jordan Ngubane’s Ushaba: The Hurtle to Blood River (1974).